The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-02-26
SHOWING WISDOM.

1t is assuring to know that Congress
has not been entirely carried away by
the cigmor of certain sensational news
papers and the howlings of certain dem
agogUes posing as statesmen in the
matters of coast defenses and the
Canadian fisheries business. If these
journals aad demagogues had been per-
mitted TO control, they would have
forced us into declaration of war with
Great Britain, and driven the country
into making a start in the building Of
forts and coast batteries which would
have involved the expenditure of hun
dreds OF millions of dollars. The Bel
mont bill in reference to the fisheries
dispute, is more statesmaniike than the
violent, defiant, threatening measure
recently passed by the Senate. The
latter bill left no discretion in the mat
ter of continuing commercial relations
with the Dominion of Canada, simply
and effectively putting an end TO such
relations. The Belmont bill, which is
now in committee of conference, wisely
Z leaves the matter to the discretion of
the President, who is authorized to act
for the best good of the United States.
It is unreasonable to suppose that
two countries so closely united, po-
litically, materially and socially, as
this republic and the Dominion of
Canada can get along without an ex-
change of courtesies and products;
and it is equally nonsensical to say
that Canada will long persist in the
apparently unreasonable course she
pursued last year. But whatever the
Dominion may do, it may be set down
as a fact that she will do nothing that
will justify the United States in declar-
ing war against her.
But this scare over our defenseless
coast is purely and inexcusably sensa-
tional. No foreign power is going to
invade the United States. Any army
that could be landed would be literary
annihilated before it could pitch its
tents. This country is too big and the
people are too well united and too pa
triotic to be assailed by any power on
the globe. Such a thing as the
conquest OF the United States is simply
out of the. question. And why should
anybody want to invade America
What occasion is there to fear the max
ing OF war upon this country? If we
have observed the advice of Washing
ton, to avoid entangliDg foreign alli-
ances-aS we assuredly have-What |
reason is there to expect trouble from
abroad? For more than a century, |
during the period of her weakness, and |
when European nations were looking
with greedy eyes o. the rising young
republic, the United States have had 10 |
occ lsion to wish for expensive coast
defenses. II the nation has been able |
to keep off enemies during its youth |
and poverty. without costly forts
a2d q vast naval establishment, it
certainly has no cause to fear now
that it is rich, prosperous, strong
and populous.
If the demagogues could have their
way the United States would at once
commerce the construction of fortiica-
lions, ordnance, and navy which would
involve the expenditure of hundreds OF
millions of dollars, all of which money
would be wasted as the forts crumbled
the guns rusted and the ships went to
decay. What America needs is dis
continuance of the war taxes, lighter.
ing of the Burdens which the people
have SO long borne, aud q government
administered in economy.
The extravaganza into which the ma
ton was to have been plunged few
weeks ago, will not come now, as Con-
gress in the aggregate has more wisdom
than some of its wide-mouthed mem
bers, and vastly more than some of the
newspapers which would have every
body believe that our coast cities were
on the eve of bombardment by some
aggressive European power.